ONE OF THE REASONS THIS COUPLE CAME TO ME IS THAT THEY ARE TRAVELERS.

They’ve been all over the world, so the dialogue that occurred within the
space and between the two of us was one that was very in sync. We had
a natural understanding about what objects would be in the space. In the
library, the hand that’s sitting on the floor is from Thailand, and there are
also 1950s tables, which I think are great. The piece above the sofa is an old
Chinese window I had mirrored from behind. It gives the impression there is
something behind it, that the room goes on because it reflects the windows
from the outside.

For the bedroom it was all about glamour. She wanted to feel as though she
were in the plushest hotel. I was sitting somewhere sketching, and I thought
something slightly more traditional like a trellis would be interesting—to do
a trellis in silver leaf with upholstery in between. Every time she entered the
room, it would give that shimmer of silver leaf with the luxury of upholstered
panels, which is exactly what we did. The bed is quite voluptuous. It was
inspired by Venetian furniture with all those swirls. The shades of the bedroom
are soft and comforting, which I thought was the right balance to the outside.

With the pendant fixture, there is something modern against something moretraditional. I was trying to do a yin and yang throughout the space.

It is the perfect pied-a-terre for New York: You feel the glamour of the city
and the comfort of an apartment. The whole apartment is very lively, and yet
the space is like a jewel box, with objects that shimmer and others that are
curios and curiosities. Because the space was so intimate and small, it allowed
me to address it in a more precious way. If it were a big, enormous room it
would be too much, like a meal that’s very rich. This is like an appetizer; It can
be rich because it’s a small bite. I could bring my palette of thinking to the
space, then blend it with what the client wanted. Doing this kind of home
involves knowing how far to take something—it’s about how eliminating
rather than always adding can give a space a sense of calm but still have
pizzazz. Still, it’s the unconventionality that I appreciated. There is no sofa, just
four club chairs. That in itself is a minimal way of thinking. n